Halcyon Climate Resilience & Food Security in Africa Fellowship 2025 for African Startups.

Application Deadline: October 11, 2024

Applications are now open for the 2025 Climate Resilience & Food Security in Africa Fellowship. The program will bring together entrepreneurs from across Africa, empowering them to address climate resilience and food security. Founders will receive expert training, critical resources to accelerate their ventures, a one-week in-person residency in Washington, DC, and a one-week in-person residency in Nairobi, Kenya.

Program Structure

• The cohort is selected of up to 10 ventures based in and/or serving any African country or countries
• Ventures receive training in Halcyon’s methodology on product-market fit, investment readiness, and leadership
• The program is delivered through:
  • A virtual kickoff meeting
  • A one-week residency in Nairobi, Kenya
  • Monthly virtual meetings
  • A one-week residency in Washington, DC

Sectors

Solutions targeting climate resilience and food security across Africa, including but not limited to:

• Climate-smart agriculture and food systems
• WaterTech
• Blue economy
• Renewable energy
• Green building
• Climate data

Eligibility Requirements

Halycon is looking for (for-profit) startups that are building scalable solutions that are tackling challenges related to climate resilience and food security across Africa.

• Location: Must have your venture based in and/or serving any African country or countries
• Stage: Must have a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) that has the potential to scale. Must be working on your venture full-time. 
• Team: 
  • May apply with up to one co-founder
  • Applicant must be the CEO and/or hold primary decision-making power
  • Must be fluent in English
  • Must be at least 21 years of age by the start of the program
• Program Engagement: Must be able to participate in all activities and programming sessions
• Impact: Must be developing a product and venture which contributes towards 1 or more of the UN’s 17 SDGs

In addition to eligibility, Halcyon scores each application based on 4 criteria: Impact, Scalability, Innovation, and Talent.

Benefits

Selected fellows will receive the following:

• $10K in Amazon Web Services (AWS) credits
• $5K stipend per venture
• Professional advisors
• Workshops with experts in leadership development, investment readiness, and product-market fit
• Networking opportunities in Washington, DC and Nairobi, Kenya to meet investors and diverse stakeholders
• A global community of 500+ impact-driven entrepreneurs
• And more

Timeline:

• August 27, 2024: Applications open
• October 11, 2024: Applications close
• December 2024: Finalists invited to a virtual pitch
• January 2025: Selected fellows will be notified
• February 7, 2025 (tentative date): Virtual program kickoff
• February 17-21, 2025: In-person residency week in Nairobi, Kenya
• March 20, April 10, and May 8, 2025: Virtual meeting dates
• June 2-6, 2025: In-person residency week in Washington, DC